Golf club head for an iron

ABSTRACT

A golf club head for an iron includes a back part, a striking plate covering the back part, and a fixing unit to join the striking plate and the back part. The fixing unit has a looped groove provided between the striking plate and the back part, and a welding material interconnecting the striking plate and the back part and filled in the looped groove.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a golf club head, more particularly to a golf club head that can be connected fixedly to a bottom end of a shaft of an iron.

2. Description of the Related Art

Golf clubs are grouped into three categories according to their functions: (1) Woods for long shots, (2) Irons for middle distance shots, and (3) Putters for aiming a golf ball into a hole. The structure of each golf club generally includes a shaft, and a head fixed to a bottom end of the shaft and having a striking plate for striking a golf ball.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a conventional golf club head 1 for an iron includes a back part 11 having a cavity 112 and a peripheral end face 111, a striking plate 12 covering the back part 11 and having a back face 121 abutting against the peripheral end face 111, a vibration-absorbing element 13 disposed in the cavity 112, and a brazing filler metal 14 to join the striking plate 12 and the back part 11.

To assemble the conventional golf club head 1, the striking plate 12 is first placed over the back part 11 so that the back face 121 abuts against the peripheral end face 111, after which the striking plate 12 and the back part 11 are pressed together. The brazing filler metal 14 is then put around a joint between the end face 111 and the back face 121, and is heated so as to be formed into a molten material. The molten brazing filler metal 14 flows into a clearance between the end face 111 and the back face 121 through a capillary action. When the molten brazing filler metal 14 solidifies, the striking plate 12 is welded fixedly to the back part 11.

Since the end face 111 and the back face 121 have flat surfaces, when they abut against each other, the clearance therebetween is relatively small. Hence, during brazing, only a minimal amount of the molten brazing filler metal 14 seeps into the clearance between the end face 111 and the back face 121, thereby resulting in the formation of an incomplete brazing layer and a weak brazing connection between the striking plate 12 and the back part 11. Further, after going through several ball-striking actions, the incomplete brazing layer may crack and thereby lead to separation of the striking plate 12 from the back part 11. Because of these reasons, during brazing, an operator must wait a considerable time so as to allow the brazing filler metal 14 to fill completely the clearance between the end face 111 and the back face 121. Even so, the ideal brazing connection is difficult to obtain. Moreover, the operator usually applies a large amount of the brazing filler metal 14 around the joint between the end face 111 and the back face 121 in an effort to increase the amount of the brazing filler metal 14 that seeps into the clearance. However, when the brazing filler metal 14 is cooled and solidified, the brazing filler metal 14 becomes a protruding body, which affects not only the appearance of the golf club head 1, but also the effect of striking a golf ball, so that another finishing process has to be performed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a golf club head for an iron that is capable of overcoming the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art.

According to this invention, a golf club head for an iron comprises a back part, a striking plate covering the back part, and a fixing unit to join the striking plate and the back part. The fixing unit has a looped groove provided between the striking plate and the back part, and a welding material interconnecting the striking plate and the back part and filled in the looped groove.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional golf club head for an iron;

FIG. 2 is an assembled sectional view of the conventional golf club head of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the first preferred embodiment of a golf club head for an iron according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is an assembled sectional view of the first preferred embodiment;

FIG. 5 is an assembled sectional view of a golf club head for an iron according to the second preferred embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is an assembled sectional view of a golf club head for an iron according to the third preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Before the present invention is described in greater detail, it should be noted that the same reference numerals have been used to denote like elements throughout the specification.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, the first preferred embodiment of a golf club head 10 for an iron according to the present invention is shown to comprise a back part 2, a striking plate 3, a shock-absorbing element 5, and a fixing unit 6.

The back part 2 is a metal shell, and includes a cavity 22, and a tubular wall 23 extending around the cavity 22 and having peripheral end face 21.

The striking plate 3 is a metal plate covering the back part 2, and has a back face 31 abutting against the peripheral end face 21, and a striking face 32 opposite to the back face 31 for striking a golf ball (not shown). A neck 33 extends upwardly and integrally from a top end of the striking plate 3 to connect fixedly with a shaft of the iron (not shown). Alternatively, the neck 33 may be formed integrally with the back part 2. The configuration of the neck 33 is not limited to the disclosed embodiment.

The shock-absorbing element 5 is disposed in the cavity 22 to absorb vibration during striking of the golf ball. Since the structure and material of the shock-absorbing element 5 are not important aspects of the present invention, and the shock-absorbing element 5 may be dispensed with, it is not described in detail herein.

The fixing unit 6 is provided to join the striking plate 3 and the back part 2, and has a looped groove 61 formed between the peripheral end face 21 of the back part 2 and the back face 31 of the striking plate 3 and extending along the length of the peripheral end face 21, and a welding material interconnecting the striking plate 3 and the back part 2 and filled in the looped groove 61. The welding material in this embodiment is a brazing filler metal 62 that has a melting point lower than those of the back part 2 and the striking plate 3. Further, in this embodiment, the end face 21 is indented to form the looped groove 61, and the looped groove 61 has a substantially U-shaped cross section. Alternatively, the cross section of the looped groove 61 may be V-shaped, square-shaped, or formed into any other geometrical configuration. Hence, the shape of the looped groove 61 is not limited to the disclosed embodiment.

To assemble the golf club head 10 of the present invention, the shock-absorbing element 5 is first disposed in the cavity 22, after which the striking plate 3 is placed to cover the back part 2, so that the back face 31 abuts against the peripheral end face 21. The striking plate 3 and the back part 2 are then pressed securely together through a jig (not shown). Subsequently, the brazing filler metal 62 is placed around the interface between the end face 21 and the back face 31, and is heated so as to be formed into a molten material. The molten brazing filler metal 62 seeps into a clearance between the end face 21 and the back face 31, and further into the looped groove 61, by a capillary action. After the brazing filler metal 62 is cooled and solidified, the striking plate 3 is welded fixedly to the back part 2.

Referring to FIG. 5, a golf club head 10′ for an iron according to the second preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown to be similar to the first preferred embodiment. However, in this embodiment, the back face 31′ is indented so as to form the looped groove 61.

Referring to FIG. 6, a golf club head 10″ for an iron according to the third preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown to be similar to the first and second preferred embodiments. However, in this embodiment, both of the end face 21″ and the back face 31″ are indented to cooperatively form the looped groove 61″. The looped groove 61″ has a circular cross section. However, the shape of the looped groove 61″ is not limited to the disclosed embodiment.

From the aforementioned description, it is apparent that the main aspect of the golf club head 10, 10′, 10″ of the present invention resides in the formation of the looped groove 61, 61″ between the peripheral end face 21, 21″ of the back part 2 and the back face 31, 31′, 31″ of the striking plate 3. During brazing, the molten brazing filler metal 62 seeps into the clearance between the peripheral end face 21, 21″ and the back face 31, 31′, 31″, and into the looped groove 61, 61″, so that when the brazing filler metal 62 is cooled and solidified, it does not protrude outwardly of the joint between the peripheral end face 21, 21″ and the back face 31, 31′, 31″. Hence, the striking plate 3 is not only welded fixedly to the back part 2, the appearance and the ball-striking effect of the golf club head 10, 10′, 10″ of the present invention are enhanced. Further, a strong welding connection of the golf club head 10, 10′, 10″ can be achieved in a relatively short amount of time and utilizing a relatively small amount of the brazing filler metal 62.

While the present invention has been described in connection with what are considered the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretations and equivalent arrangements. 

1. A golf club head for an iron, comprising: a back part; a striking plate covering said back part; and a fixing unit to join said striking plate and said back part, said fixing unit having a looped groove provided between said striking plate and said back part, and a welding material interconnecting said striking plate and said back part and filled in said looped groove.
 2. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein said back part includes a cavity, and a tubular wall extending around said cavity and having a peripheral end face, said striking plate having a back face abutting against said peripheral end face, said looped groove being provided between said peripheral end face and said back face and extending along the length of said peripheral end face.
 3. The golf club head of claim 2, wherein said end face is indented to form said looped groove.
 4. The golf club head of claim 2, wherein said back face is indented to form said looped groove.
 5. The golf club head of claim 2, wherein both of said end face and said back face are indented to cooperatively form said looped groove.
 6. The golf club head of claim 1, further comprising a shock-absorbing element disposed in said cavity. 